Taking A Holiday Break – Tea Time
One of the things we have to remember, in the midst of all of the holiday hoopla, is to schedule in time for a little respite from the decorating, shopping, baking, shopping, wrapping, more shopping . . . well, I’m sure you can relate. It doesn’t have to be like flying away to a tropical island, although, that might be pretty nice with our recent weather chill!
I look for places, within an hour’s drive, and where there might be a special activity to share some one-on-one time with a friend. It’s easy to let the holidays overtake our schedules, but I treasure the gift of companionship, more so than having a pile of gifts under the tree.
Today, I met my friend, Davetta, for an afternoon holiday tea at Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens, in Belmont, NC. (Belmont is home to Belmont Abbey College and the Belmont Abbey, which has housed Benedictine Monks since the late 1800’s.) The Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden is a 450-acre world-class garden located southwest of Belmont. Daniel J. Stowe, a retired textile executive, set aside the property and established a foundation to develop the garden. The first gardens opened to the public in 1999.
I’ll delightfully take you on a photo tour of my afternoon. It was a great escape and the tea was wonderful, too!
Greeting us, in the main hall, was a beautiful 16’ tree. From a distance, I could tell the colors of the decorations perfectly suited the stained glass dome, above it.
A closer look at the dome. I almost felt as if I could be in a basilica, instead of a botanical garden!
As we approached the tree, I realized it was created entirely of live orchids and ferns! I couldn’t count them all. Luck would have it, the plaque to the left told the story. More than 300!
I wish I had brought a better camera but I wanted to travel light for the tea. All of these were taken with my Droid phone’s camera, with the exception of the top photo.
There was a vast display of urns and wreaths. They were sprinkled in the jeweled tones of the orchids.
A couple of side rooms held more treasures. We had a few minutes before our tea was served so we took a sneak peek!
Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens often hosts weddings and events. This stately room was open at the time of our tour.
My photo is a little fuzzy. The flocking on the tree reminded me of stories my husband would tell me about how he and his father and brothers would head to the tree lot, each year, and wait while the “snow” was added to a large spruce tree. In the south, it’s rare to have snow at Christmas, so this was the next best thing!
The tree was loaded with ornaments. Christmas is the one time of year when less isn’t more, in my book!
I wonder how many little ones have to be pulled away from the pile of presents? It’s just too tempting!
The theme was carried to sconces, flanking the side of the china cabinet. Lusciously lovely!
And then there was the tea! Four different kinds! Vanilla Chai Spice, Berry Fruit Cocktail, Chocolate Rooibos, and Sugar Plum. The ladies from Savannah’s Room certainly know their tea and shared a lovely tutorial. The tea sandwiches were delicious and the scones were absolutely delectable with lemon curd and clotted cream. I swooned!
Although not a part of our tea, I just had to photograph these fun Rudolph cupcakes being sold at another part of the venue. They were from Brenda’s Cake Gallery and they looked mouth-watering. (The exception being that I was still sated from the tea treats!)
After the tea, Davetta and I toured the orchid conservatory. Since the temperature was in the low forties, the warmth was most welcome. A veritable tropical get-a-way! (Almost like that island idea, I previously mentioned.)
A different kind of window shopping.
A purple bromeliad was nesting cozily in the verdant foliage.
I loved this red mesh lantern! It was one of many hanging throughout the conservatory.
Look what was circling the tracks! They really covered every detail for the attendees’ interest.
You might be wondering how wisteria could still be blooming. The ingenious designers clustered purple lights to appear as blossoms. As it became darker, the pergola took on a magical twinkle.
It must have taken months to cover so much territory.
A holiday wonderland!
For kids, big and small!
Back indoors, we enjoyed many trees decorated by local schools.
How proud the students had to be to see their handiwork! (The cardinal is our state bird.)
As nightfall arrived, all I could think of was this:
~But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night."~
Merry, Merry! ~ Wanda
20 Days and Counting! ~ All my best! ~ Wanda
Another spot in Chicago which I visited was the 
This unusual folly was created in 1992 by Simon Verity as one of the focal points of the English garden. 
I loved this central urn on a pedastal. 
Why do elements like this make a garden so much more appealing to me? Ahhh yes - they add architectural interest!!
The other side of the walled garden overlooks a lake with 2 pavilions at either end.
One pavilion is open as a seating area. This would be a great place for a picnic!
